Ocular dominance, sometimes referred to as eye dominance or eyedness, is the tendency to prefer visual input from one eye over the other. While it is not uncommon for one eye to be dominant over the other, an overwhelming dominance can be harmful and can lead to a loss of vision in the weaker eye. For young children, the strength of the weaker eye may be improved by placing an eye patch over the dominant eye, thereby forcing reliance on the weaker eye.
To effectively rehabilitate the weaker eye, a child must be prevented from using his or her peripheral vision to see out of the dominant eye. Thus, sight lines of the dominant eye are generally blocked by using an eye patch that is secured with an adhesive to the child's face over the dominant eye. This arrangement has numerous disadvantages however. Such eye patches are often uncomfortable for the child and the adhesive may irritate the child's skin and eyebrow. Perspiration can increase these effects as it can cause itching and the eye patch may come loose, increasing the frequency at which it is re-adhered to the child's face. The close proximity of the eye patch to the eye may also cause irritation.